


Downtime

by Rens_Knight



Series: In the Burning of the Light [16]
Category: Star Wars Legends: The Old Republic
Genre: Gen, Literature, Sci-Fi, fan fiction
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-19
Updated: 2018-05-19
Packaged: 2019-05-14 15:28:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,079
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14772269
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rens_Knight/pseuds/Rens_Knight
Summary: There are many areas for which Tarssus' education, first as a blacksmith-slave, and then as a Lord of the Sith, did not prepare him.The concept of "vacationing" is most definitely one of them.





	Downtime

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Collectorofhats](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Collectorofhats/gifts).



> This story is written as part of a prompt exchange with [Kuro-Tsuki-san](https://kuro-tsuki-san.deviantart.com). She requested the following from my SWTOR universe: " _Write Tarssus Kallig's reaction to the first time he takes a vacation._ "

**Star Wars: _In the Burning of the Light_  
"Downtime"**

****

Everyone was shouting at me.

Truthfully, only a few among my crew were actually _speaking_ , hardly even raising their voices over each other.  That said, the fact that I had absolutely no idea what to _do_ about this conundrum did nothing to foster a more peaceful impression.

The first voice was barely more than a rumble beneath the rest...or more aptly, a _grumble_ , in the Dashadi tongue.  " _This is an utter waste of time unfit for a warrior._ "

Truth be told, a great part of me felt rather the same.  I ought to be somewhere making myself _useful_ , not deliberately seeking to be as unproductive as possible.  Every moment wasted was one in which the enemies of the Empire...and of those who would seek to define a new way to rule it...could move against us and I would be nowhere near my post to defend us.

"My lord," my Kaleesh apprentice, Xalek, said, "if it please you, the world of Kalee _is_ fit for a warrior.  There are many glorious battles to be had there, between the tribes, or in the arenas if you wish to spectate."

Blood sports... _that_ would figure.  Nor was I about to get mixed up in another world's tribal wars for no other reason but _enjoyment_.  I knew very little of this vacationing business, but I was damned sure that where I was concerned, that was not it.

The trouble was, I had no idea what it truly _was_.  Quite simply, I had not known a true day of rest in my life.  And I hadn't the faintest idea what to _do_ with myself without some sort of task or mission...oh, be honest, some sort of _threat_ to spur me to action, whether it be the vibrowhip of an overseer, or the sabers of my Sith masters and rivals.

2V-R8 piped up--rather more helpfully, in my opinion.  And I was _also_ quite pleased to observe his assertiveness in the matter.  In fact, it had been he who had, in the absence of a medic amongst our crew, privately alerted me to the fact that some sort of downtime might be in order.  Though subtle, he _had_ noted our efforts flagging somewhat since the defeat of Thanaton, my accession to the Dark Council...and the funeral of my father.  And that presented its _own_ sort of threat to us...one that the droid, of all beings, knew exactly how to address.

" _I would be delighted to compile a list of resorts and attractions across the Empire for your approval_ ," he contributed.  " _It would then be possible for me to combine visitor ratings and actual interstellar traffic to each destination to determine the most suitable._ "

Traffic.  I winced.  That meant one thing: crowds.  And where there were _crowds_ , there followed all sorts of security concerns.  And even worse than that, _attention_ , focused squarely on myself, Dark Councillor of the Sphere of Ancient Knowledge.  Not only would that be unpleasant for _me_ , but I had to imagine that would prove incredibly disruptive to everyone else who had had the misfortune to select the same destination as one of those responsible for managing the affairs of the Sith Empire.

"If nothing else," I temporized, "I can look over that list later if we fail to arrive at a solution right now."

"I know _lots_ of places," Andronikos Revel put in.  The human pirate grinned.  "Plenty of action, plenty of ways to unwind.  Sights and sports and clubs galore!"

And also _plenty_ of ways to get into trouble, if I knew the sort of place Revel had in mind.  Worse...ways for _Andronikos_ to get into trouble.  It hadn't been long since my brother and advisor Talos Drellik had informed me of Andronikos' propensity to incredibly dangerous bouts of binge drinking when the opportunity in port presented itself.  I had been forced to confront the man, both to warn him, and to offer him a support I feared myself ill qualified to give, as one who had only once in my life even touched strong drink to my lips.  But I knew one thing I could not do.  And that was to put Andronikos, so newly engaged in the battle for sobriety, into a venue _so_ damnably tempting for him.

"The more I think," I replied, letting slip no hint before the crew of what had transpired between Revel and me, "the more I feel that perhaps I don't want action.  Or even crowds, for that matter.  I want to feel alone...or near enough to it, anyway."  Then I sighed, folding my arms across my chest.  "But I don't know that it would be fair to all of you, who have worked and fought so hard at my side."

"Perhaps," Talos suggested, "you might consider one of the unsettled worlds.  There would be plenty of unspoiled sights to behold--imagine, nearly the clarity with which we see the stars up here aboard ship, but with the soil of a planet beneath the feet.  There could be big game to hunt and prepare fresh meals for those so inclined--"  Talos nodded at Khem Val, Xalek, and Andronikos.  "Plenty of new phenomena to catalogue..."  Talos indicated 2V-R8.  "And places to meditate, or simply _relax_."  In this number, I sensed rather strongly that Talos placed himself.

"The question is," I muttered, "what world."

And that was where my dear fiancee Ashara spoke up.  "I've heard of a world in Wild Space...the Jedi Exploratory Corps had just reported back on it while I was still on Taris.  They called it Odessen, and it's supposed to be naturally balanced in the Force...anchored in a way the Force of Tython and Dromund Kaas is not.  It's uninhabited, and as far as I know, the Jedi don't have any plans to go there.  I think its Force is a little too grey for their liking."

"Well, we Sith are unafraid," I proclaimed for the benefit of those amongst my crew who ought not to know of what such balance meant to Ashara and me.  "If the Jedi are unwilling to investigate this place further, then _we_ will."  I grinned.  "In an appropriately leisurely manner, of course.  And off the books.  We don't need the entire galaxy to know about our personal retreat."

A _whole world_ entirely to ourselves.  Now _that_ , I decided, sounded like an appropriate definition of _vacation_.

**Author's Note:**

> Yes, I know Odessen isn't seen until the _Knights of the Fallen Empire_ expansion. But Tarssus decides not to tell anyone back in the Empire about where they've been hanging out on vacation, and when Satele Shan gets there years after this story, she won't have had any way to know that someone had actually spent significant time there before her and what would later become the Alliance.


End file.
